UK-Swiss Trade Agreement Hinges on Market Access, Data and IP

(Bloomberg) — A new free-trade agreement between the UK and Switzerland must overcome issues such as data regulation, intellectual property and access to service-sector companies, the Swiss government said while stressing that talks are “well advanced.”

Almost three years into the talks, negotiators have made “good progress” on services, investment and digital trade, Bern’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs told Bloomberg. The 10th round of negotiations took place this month in Geneva, according to an emailed statement.

“Outstanding issues remain, among other things, regarding market access in the services sector, data flows and data protection, as well as on certain aspects of intellectual property,” it said.

The agency declined to give a date by which the talks are intended to finish, saying “the goal is to make further progress in the coming months and to create the conditions for a conclusion.”

Both countries started negotiating an update to their existing free-trade agreement — which rolled over from when the UK was part of the European Union — in 2023. Dating back to 1972, the accord predates the internet and focuses on trade in goods, largely omitting exchange of services.

In a statement to parliament, the UK government also said progress has been made.

“The government will only ever sign a trade agreement which aligns with the UK’s national interests, upholding our high standards across a range of sectors, alongside protections for the National Health Service,” trade minister Chris Bryant said without elaborating on existing disagreements.

Since talks started, relations between Western Europe’s two major non-EU economies have been boosted by an agreement to recognize each other’s laws and regulations in financial services. The accord easing post-Brexit market access for banks, insurers and asset managers entered force this year.

Switzerland’s Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter is visiting London this week to discuss the agreement with her counterpart Rachel Reeves. She’s not in charge of talks on the free-trade agreement, which are helmed by Economy Minister Guy Parmelin.

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